Extensions of hours up for discussion.

Osoyoos' Sage Pub, located on Cottonwood Drive, is requesting a permanent change to their hours of operation, extending them to 2 a.m.
In May of 2005, the Sage Pub requested and was approved the one hour extension on a temporary basis, from June 1 to September 5.
At that time, under the rules of the B.C. Liquor Control and Licencing Regulation, council considered the potential for increased noise, the impact on the community, and any comments from residents. The temporary extension was then granted.
Two letters of opposition to the extended hours have been received by the Town of Osoyoos, one from a resident of the Palms condominium next door and one from a summer guest at the nearby Poplars Motel. Reasons cited against the extension of the pub's closing time were noise, broken bottles, screeching tires as people leave the pub area, and vomit on the street the next morning.
At the December 19 meeting, council had three options to consider.
Option one was to ask for a public process to give the adjacent and surrounding area the opportunity to provide comment on the impact of the temporary extension granted between May and September 2005.
Option two was that council could either support or not support the extension of hours with no public consultation.
Option three was to grant another temporary extension of hours, not exceeding 11 months.
Councillor Dick Flintoft made a motion to seek public input on the one-hour extension. He suggested the council check with the neighbours and the RCMP to determine if the extra hour was acceptable or not. The motion was seconded by Councillor Allan Carswell.
Councillor Ted Cronmiller suggested that when council seeks information from the RCMP, they also inquire about the Owl Pub on Main Street, which has been granted a permanent change of hours to 2 a.m.
Maybe they can do some comparisons to see what kinds of issues have arisen due to the extended hours. From my experience [in the RCMP], I tend to think that whether it's 1 a.m. or 2 a.m., it doesn't make much difference, as far as the police are concerned, said Cronmiller.
Councillor Stu Wells said the businesses have to have a level playing field, and he added he would personally like to see the hours of the Owl Pub go back to 1 a.m., but that is not possible under the law.
Notice of the intent to extend the hours of operation will be placed in two editions of the Osoyoos Times. Comments can be forwarded, in writing, to the Town of Osoyoos Development Services Department.
In addition, notice of the intent to extend the hours of operation will be delivered to all property owners within 30 metres of the Sage Pub, and the RCMP will be asked to provide a letter of support for the proposed extension of hours.
Sage Pub owner Allan Redekopp said he was not surprised by council's decision to go back to the public process.
Obviously, I'm not surprised but I'm not enthused about it , either, Redekopp said.
We already jumped through hoops and now we have to go through the process all over again. The people who were opposed will still be nay-sayers, and the people who supported us will still be in favour.
I feel we proved ourselves last summer. We demonstrated fairly that we could do this, and we had all kinds of extra staff on to handle the extra hour. I think we also had the support of the police, who felt this was better than seeing people jump in their cars and go across town to the Owl for that last hour.rnHe added that he hoped council would decide in his favour so that his business could operate on a level playing field.